The latest market report from Savills Scotland that sales of properties worth over £400,000 fell by 5% in 2012 compared with 2011 but there were regional variations.
The firm says that events such as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympics diverted the nation’s attention from the business of buying and selling houses, further slowing the traditionally quiet summer market.
However, whilst prime transactions were down overall across Scotland, distinct pockets of the country went against the overall trend to varying degrees. The number of sales increased in Argyll and Bute by 47%, in East Lothian by 38% and in Dumfries and Galloway by 41%. Some parts of Edinburgh also say prime sales rise including Inverleith up 29%, the New Town up 24% and Stockbridge up 22%. Renfrewshire saw a modest rise of 2%. All other areas saw a negative change in the number of annual sales.
‘The locations mentioned above straddle east and west, and have different characteristics such as seaside commuter town, rural idyll, prime suburb, and all comprise a high proportion of high quality prime, period housing,’ explained Faisal Choudhry, associate director of residential research at Savills Glasgow.
‘They are also all established, sought after, best in class locations whether by virtue of their proximity to Scotland’s leading schools, the capital’s commercial centre, or simply because they offer a desirable lifestyle in some of the most beautiful parts of the Scottish countryside,’ he said.
‘However, these are not the only common themes. Importantly, the houses that have sold in these prime locations have, for the most part, been realistically priced, offering value for money in a tough economic climate,’ he pointed out.
He added that these cases are exceptions to the rule and the total number of prime transactions across Scotland has been compromised by steep falls in other locations such as Lanarkshire which was down 33% and Ayrshire down 27%.
The actual number of sales in 2012 at 2,070 is similar to the number of homes changing hands on average per year between 2003 and 2012 but Savills believes that the real challenge for the majority of sellers, and the issue at the heart of the current property market slump, is the high number of properties left unsold on the prime housing market.
Choudhry said that this is particularly so in areas where supply is outstripping demand and where asking prices are simply too high and out of step with what the market will pay.
